This invention relates to games and particularly games utilizing boards on which a playing piece is moved thereover by a player's skill and/or luck in such a manner that game events are signalled by such movement. As such, the invention has particular utility with pinball machine constructions but is not limited to such devices.
In such pinball and related game devices, the circuitry necessary in order to record scores and other game events as the ball or other playing piece progresses about the surface of the game board has generally taken the form of relatively complex mechanical or electro-mechanical components which do not lend themselves to use with state of the art microelectronic circuits such as utilized in calculators, digital watches and the like. One such game construction is shown by U.S. Pat. No. 3,348,844 issued Oct. 24, 1967, in which a game board is provided with rigid conductive electrical conductive strips which form a partial circuit with contact closure caused by a conductive game piece which bridges such strips as it rolls over selected areas of the board. A further game device in which a conductive game piece brings about contact closure between circuit portions is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,386,517 issued Aug. 2, 1921. The patents above cited and the discussion thereof constitutes applicant's Prior Art Disclosue and in that regard a copy of each such patent is enclosed with this application.
It is accordingly a primary object of the present invention to provide a game construction having a playing board including electrical circuitry such that the movement of a game piece thereover flexes said board to cause such circuitry to be activated such that game events including scores and the like may be signalled.
A further object of the present invention is the provision of a game construction of the above-indicated type in which the circuitry thereof is specifically adapted to interface with known microelectronic circuits as utilized in calculators and the like.
A still further object of the present invention is the provision of a game construction of the above-identified type in which one of the game events signalled by such circuitry includes the tilting of the game board surface away from its normal playing position.
These and other objects of the present invention are achieved by the provision of a game board having a playing surface formed by the outer surface of a flexible material sheet on which a first partial electrical circuit is disposed on the inner surface thereof. A second partial electrical circuit which is complementary to the first circuit is positioned in spaced relationship to the inner surface of said sheet with selected portions of each of said circuits opposed to each other to form pairs of opposed contacts such that as a playing piece supported by the playing surface moves thereacross, said piece inwardly flexes portions of the sheet such that one of said contact pairs are brought into mutual contact so as to signal a game event.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention shall become apparent as the description thereof proceeds when considered in connection with the accompanying illustrative drawing.